Training contracts

We recruit 25 trainees every year, split between March and September intakes and based at our offices in London, Birmingham, Exeter and Manchester. We are currently recruiting for our training contract vacancies to start in 2026. We recruit the majority of our trainees through our summer vacation scheme but recognise that not everyone is able to complete a scheme so do also recruit a small number via our direct process.

We do not review applications on a rolling basis, therefore, if successful you will be invited to an assessment centre in August/September 2024. Applications for our training contracts will open on 2 October 2023 and close on 31 July 2024.

Training is divided into four six-month seats, and you can expect to experience a broad range of departments and practice areas over the course of the two-year period.

All trainees are teamed with a supervisor. It's their role to guide you through each of your six-month seats and ensure that you are given plenty of challenges and all the support you need to succeed.

Our close-knit team and collaborative approach drives our high calibre work, and it’s what gives us our sterling reputation in the industry. This will be reflected in your experience from day one. As soon as you join the team, you will be given real responsibility and the opportunity to learn with hands-on experience in a supportive working environment.

Seats

Our service to clients is delivered through a number of core areas: real estate, banking and finance, corporate and commercial, dispute resolution and litigation, employment and pensions, planning and environmental, projects and construction and tax and private wealth. 
  
We offer trainees the opportunity to spend six months in one of our offices in the Middle East: Abu Dhabi, Bahrain, Dubai and Oman. You'll be given a high level of responsibility and opportunities to get involved in some fascinating international work with teams all over the globe.

“We get to work across the public sector and the private sector, across big clients and smaller clients, for both individuals and companies. There’s a perfect blend of people at Trowers that helps us create really high-quality work, every day. ” 

Our training

Trainees are critical to the success and growth of our firm. Our clients need you to be pragmatic, commercial and know their business. Not only will you need strong legal skills, you'll need a wide range of business skills to achieve excellence.

We have designed a structured training programme that will help equip you with the skills you'll need to perform your role to the highest standards, with plenty of support from your colleagues. The programme draws from a range of expertise from across the business as well as external experts, helping you produce exceptional work.

"Being a lawyer is about more than just knowing the law-  that is why we've created a comprehensive training programme to provide you with the skills and know-how you need, to give you the best possible start to your career" 

Lucy James, Training Principal

Our appraisal process

We believe that continuous assessment and feedback is key to the successful development of everyone, and this is particularly true for our trainees. During each seat, you will have a mid-seat and end-of-seat appraisal with your supervisor to assess and discuss your performance so far. Your supervisor will help you to identify any gaps in your knowledge and experience and, most importantly, help you to plug those gaps.

Our Trainee Solicitors' Committee

We believe in providing our trainees with a strong network of support that they can turn to in times of need. Lucy James (our Training Principal) and our Graduate Recruitment & Development team are always on hand to offer advice and understanding.

We believe in providing our trainees with a strong network of support that they can turn to in times of need. Lucy James (our Training Principal) and our Graduate Recruitment & Development team are always on hand to offer advice and understanding.

The Trainee Solicitors' Committee is chaired by Lucy and includes a cross-section of Partners as well as the Graduate Recruitment & Development team. The committee meets regularly to discuss trainee-related issues and initiatives and focuses us on ensuring that we continue to offer the best training possible.

The Trainee Solicitors' Committee is chaired by Lucy and includes a cross-section of Partners as well as the Graduate Recruitment & Development team. The committee meets regularly to discuss trainee-related issues and initiatives and focuses us on ensuring that we continue to offer the best training possible.

One trainee represents each intake on the committee. The trainee representatives are encouraged to raise any issues to be discussed at the meeting for considerate feedback.

Qualification

As a trainee, you will have the opportunity to apply for any newly qualified vacancies available across the firm during your qualification process. The process is comprehensive, open and transparent — we inform our qualifying trainees of how many positions there are in each department / office and run a formal application and interview process for those vacancies.

Because we want to get the best out of our people and provide our clients with the best solutions possible, the training never stops at Trowers. We operate a structured newly qualified programme to help make the transition as smooth as possible.